Rain

“We should kill her now, before her siren gets any stronger.”

I held back the thick drapes and watched as one of our professors, Theodore, moved across campus to greet the first-year students.

“Why so blood thirsty, Rain? You need to loosen up. I’ll invite Lillian over tonight. She’s been offering to help you relax for some time now. She frequently reminds me of it, when my fangs are deep in the sweet curve of her neck.” Nikolai, vampire prince and my twin brother, sat on the red sofa, his long legs spread out, looking nonchalant.

“I’ll pass on your seconds.” … which include most of the females at the academy. He has no discerning taste.

The Academy of Awakenings—which was nowhere near as majestic as our home, the Dracian Palace—was made up of gothic brick dormitories surrounding a monstrous castle with ancient classrooms and cavernous halls.

From the second-year dormitory window, I couldn’t see the baby immortals disembarking from their carriages, but I knew just what they’d look like: every one of them desperate to prove themselves worthy of a seat at the faerie court, of becoming an alpha or omega in a shifter pack, or a position working for Dracian royalty. Even the elves, those mysterious beings, gave up the safety of their misty forests to train at the academy. This year’s group of newbies would include the object of my hatred and the sole heir to the Glass Throne.

I turned back to the window. From here I could see the new students making their way to the dreary first-year dorms. I needed to see what she looked like so I’d know I had the right one when I separated the monstrous siren’s head from her body.

The door slammed open, announcing Ash’s arrival. He ruffled his feathered wings, stretching them out before tucking them in close to his back.

He grinned. “Look what I found.” Behind him, a werewolf I’d never seen before ducked under the doorframe. Considering Ash’s height, and this wolf was at least a head taller, I could only assume the stranger was Zander from the Dathuil pack. We’d all heard the stories: how he’d killed wolves from a rival pack when he was just a child and begun his transition at only sixteen. What I couldn’t comprehend was why the faerie had invited him here.

“Aw, look, brother, the faerie’s adopted a pet,” Nikolai mocked, his grin slicing over them. Zander just glowered, his huge frame dwarfing the space around him. He looked every bit as wild as the wolf he was. He may be formidable, but he should know his place when in the presence of vampire royalty.

“Ash, leash your pet if he isn’t going to pay us the respect we deserve.”

“The respect you deserve?” Zander’s body rumbled with laughter. “You were born into your privilege, vampire crowns placed on your heads since before you lost your baby fangs.”

I traced before him, moving so fast that even his preternatural senses couldn’t track my movement. My fangs shot out, and I wrapped my hand around the insolent wolf’s neck before he had a chance to blink.

“I suggest you don’t push me unless you want to be served up on a platter to feed the third-year vampires.” I met him with all the power of a Dracian prince. It didn’t matter that I had to reach up to squeeze his neck, I was still faster and stronger than the fledgling wolf pup, and he would do well to remember it.

“You should know better than to provoke a vampire as unstable as my brother,” Nikolai said humorously, swirling blood in his glass and taking a satisfied sip. Ash sat beside him and conjured an apple from a seed, taking a bite and watching our confrontation as if he wasn’t the instigator. I knew better than to underestimate the faerie. He’d proven himself a force to be reckoned with—as great a force as my brother and I. Interestingly, this new wolf—Zander—didn’t even flinch as my hand tightened around his neck. “Cocky of you, a pup who has yet to make his first shift, to think that you can just walk in here and disrespect us.”

“You haven’t earned your position as heir … but you will. And I’m going to tell you how.” His glaring eyes bored into me with the intensity of an immortal much older. I’d seen that look in the faces of vampire elders who traced through the Dracian palace halls like tormented whispers of the night. I often wondered if I bore the same expression on my own face. Those monsters, the sirens, took everything from my brother and me. Nikolai might have chosen to drown himself in drink and immortal females until he didn’t have to face the truth of what we’d lost, but I was intent on revenge.

“You’re going to tell me how I can earn my position, mutt,” I scoffed, squeezing hard enough to cut off his airway. Even as his face turned crimson, he stood his ground. If nothing else, I could admire the wolf’s tenacity. The vampire and werewolf kingdoms shared a border. One day, my brother and I would have to work with the werewolf alphas to maintain peace. Perhaps an alliance with Zander would benefit us in the future. I’d give him a chance to prove himself, and if he was wasting our time, well … he’d heal from the wounds eventually.

“You have my attention.” I released him and traced back to the window, frantically scanning the campus paths once again. Had I missed the siren princess’s arrival?

“How much do you know about the original Cinderella story and the apple necklace?” he asked, and my lips curved into a sinister smile.

***

Ten minutes later we all stared at Zander in silent contemplation. If what he said about the necklace was true, we had to seriously consider how to acquire it.

“We’ve all felt the threat of war. Even now, there are rumours of plans to take the Glass Kingdom’s wealth and share it amongst the other six kingdoms. The Glass Queen would never relinquish her throne without leaving a trail of destruction and bloodshed behind,” Zander said.

Ash walked to the kitchen and opened the cookie jar.

“Do you ever stop eating?” I asked. He shrugged, shoving two into his mouth.

I idly watched Beauty and the Beast’s daughter, LinLin, join a first-year vampire by the gardens as I said challengingly over my shoulder. “This is a waste of time. You’ve brought us rumours and a weak proposition that will never work. Even if this necklace does exist, there’s no way we can steal it from the headmistresses without being discovered. I’m not willing to risk expulsion and my position as heir to the Dracian Throne over a rumour.”

“What if you didn’t have to? What if none of us had to risk ourselves?” Ash said, around a mouthful of cookies. That mischievous glint in his eyes told me he was formulating some plan which was sure to cause more trouble.

“What do you propose?” Zander asked, crossing his scarred arms over his chest.

“Why should we risk our necks to steal the necklace when the headmistresses’ own niece could do it for us?”

I shook my head. “No way. Work with a siren? Never.” … Besides, I’d much prefer to remove her pretty head from her neck.

“And how exactly would we convince her to do it?” Zander asked.

“Give me time. Her closest friend is Rapunzel’s daughter, Corrie. Actually, I believe Corrie is Princess Kira’s only friend. She’s a faerie and we grew up together in the Kingdom of Towers. If we’re going to find a way to trick Kira into stealing the necklace for us, through Corrie is our best chance. And it is worth the risk if what Zander says is true. Once we have the necklace, we will hold a powerful card,” Ash mused.

“What do you think about this idea, brother?” I questioned Nikolai who’d been silent throughout the whole conversation.

“I think this blood is exquisite.” He flashed his fangs before downing the last of the liquid from his glass. I frowned. My brother’s disinterest in any matters concerning our kingdom and our future was disturbing to say the least.

Zander joined me at the window. “That’s her.” He pushed the curtain back further.

Nikolai remained as uninterested as ever, but Ash joined us as we watched Princess Kira and the faerie, Corrie, follow their footmen down the cobblestone path to the first-year dormitory. I expected her to be carried in, arrogantly dressed in a royal gown laced in gold and wearing glass slippers. Instead she wore a sweater, a checkered miniskirt with a leather strap securing a weapon at her thigh and ankle boots. Her hair was tied in a long braid which trailed down her back. The short parade of people and trunks disappeared into the dorm before I could get a good view of her face. Something hard and sharp clenched low in my abdomen.

Irritated, I turned away.

“Regardless of whether or not this necklace exists. I’d rather drink tar than ask for the siren’s help.”

“Suit yourself.” Zander shrugged. “Just don’t be jealous when I am known as the wolf who single-handedly prevented the war between our seven kingdoms.”

Zander left to join the rest of the student body making their way in groups to the ceremony hall. I wouldn’t be attending the opening ceremony. I had too much to think about.

“Where are you going?” I asked Nikolai, who was buttoning up his black shirt.

“I have a date with lunch.” He grinned and traced from the room.

Nikolai

I leant against the rough stone wall, tilting my face to the warm midday sun. I was … bored. Before my transition, the small pleasures, such as soaking in the daylight, were all I needed. These days, the heat barely penetrated my skin. Despite the danger, I toyed with the idea of slipping off my protection ring and allowing the sunlight to burn my skin just to feel something again. It wasn’t all bad though. Blood had become sweeter—even more so when it came direct from a warm body.

Speaking of warm bodies … Lillian separated from a group of witches going to the opening ceremony and sauntered over to where I basked in the sun. I watched her between slit eyelids as she swayed up to me. “Hey,” she breathed, leaning in and pressing her breasts against my chest.

“Were you waiting for someone?” she flirted, trailing a finger along the collar of my shirt and then down my chest.

“Only you, gorgeous.”

Minutes before Lillian’s arrival I was distracted by Corrie, the princess’s faerie friend, as she passed by on her way to the opening ceremony. She was alone though, so … where was Princess Kira? Perhaps the heir to the Glass Kingdom wasn’t as perfect as her mother claimed her to be. The thought fuelled my curiosity. It was a rare emotion for me—curiosity.

“Well, here I am.” She tugged down her neckline, revealing the smooth curve of her neck.

I shifted her hair aside, grinning. Why turn down such a generous offer?

She groaned as I sank my fangs into her neck, drawing blood and letting it coat my tongue before swallowing every drop. Her blood had an undertaste of smoked cloves. Most witch’s blood had it. It wasn’t unpleasant—not like the taste of other vampires. Drinking another vampire was like drinking dirty water. Comparatively, humans and other immortals were like sipping on the finest champagne.

Try as I might, I couldn’t lose myself in the witch as I had so many times before. There was something nagging at me. Part of me really wanted to see one of the last surviving sirens. I didn’t hold a grudge against her kind like my brother did. And besides, I knew the princess herself wasn’t responsible for our parents’ deaths. She’d been nothing but a child at the time, just as we were. But I shouldn’t be curious about her either. I’d cared about little since our parent’s death. Yet, here I was, thinking about a siren when the witch had laid herself out before me like an offering. Without ceasing to draw her blood, I spun us around so Lillian was pressed between me and the wall.

She groaned loudly with pleasure.

“Get off her!” Soft hands twisted my arm back, and I was yanked from Lillian by a gorgeous female, her blue eyes wide, her long braid whipping in the air. Watching her with hooded eyelids, I wiped a tongue over my bloody fangs and retracted them into my gums.

Lillian whimpered, her gaze still hazy with lust. The female drew Lillian away from me. “Are you okay?”

“What the hell? You one of his exes?” Lillian pushed the female off her and rubbed at the rune charms which hung around her neck. They were symbols inked onto small scrolls of parchment and strung together like a necklace. Most of them were beginner runes, too weak to do any real damage.

“You’re a witch.” The female’s eyes widened.

“And you’re a major buzz kill,” Lillian replied dismissively, flipping her hair.

I leant against the wall and chuckled at their interchange, swiping back my light-brown hair.

I could feel the female’s gaze on me, like she couldn’t quite drag her eyes away. I gazed back, assessing. Blue streaks peeked out from her braid—a hint of rebellion. The green blouse, which stretched over full breasts, was tucked neatly into her high-waisted skirt and suggested good girl, but the dagger holstered to her thigh said something else. She must be a first-year; there’s no way I wouldn’t have noticed her before now.

Mmmm … My day has just become way more interesting.

I must’ve been too caught up in my observations and missed something because Lillian was adjusting her top and readying to leave.

“You’re definitely not one of his exes then, or you wouldn’t be asking me such a stupid question.”

Lillian pressed her lips to mine. “Thanks, babe. See you later.”

She sauntered off, putting an extra sway in her hips, just for me. But the effort was wasted. I was too distracted by the female who was staring at me like I was a dirty human or something.

“Sorry for ruining your … date.” She sneered, turning to leave as if she couldn’t wait to get away from me. I traced in front of her and crowded her until she fell back against the wall, placing one hand beside her head.

I closed my eyes, leaning even closer, and breathed her in. She smelt … incredible, nothing like the smoked clove smell of witches or the ditch water of vampires. Fuck. I bet her blood would taste orgasmic.

“What are you doing?” Her lips parted, and her breath hitched.

I hadn’t even realised how close I’d gotten to her neck until she spoke. It would barely take a second for me to press my lips to her supple skin and bite down. She visibly swallowed.

What was I doing? The female was clearly young and inexperienced. I was a male of many pleasures, but there was a line I wouldn’t cross. That didn’t mean I couldn’t enjoy myself a little.

“Since you disturbed my date, I thought a delicacy like yourself must be offering herself in substitution.”

The female’s eyes widened, and a pink tint rose in her luscious cheeks. I wondered if her whole body flushed like that.

She blinked, then placed her hands on my chest and pushed. She was much stronger than I was expecting, and I stumbled back.

“I’m not interested in whatever you’re offering, so back off. I was just on my way to the opening ceremony when I got sidetracked by your disgusting display,” she said, her face darkening with something akin to … hate or fear? I’d only been meaning to tease the gorgeous creature. A hint of guilt travelled through me—another emotion I rarely felt.

“You’re a first-year,” I asserted, not wanting to let her escape just yet and feeling more and more like a cat toying with a pretty little mouse.

“Give the fanger a prize.” She walked around me like I was no better than the dirt beneath her shoes. If she knew who I was, she’d never dismiss me so flippantly. She certainly wasn’t a vampire or a shifter. She didn’t have the elven ears, and without wings she couldn’t be a faerie, and a witch’s sense of self-preservation would be stronger.

I traced in front of her again, catching her gaze and using my compulsion to draw the truth from her.

“You’re no witch. What manner of creature are you?”

Her eyes widened, and her pink lips moved, “I’m a m-mo—” I felt her resisting my compulsion, so I coaxed her fingers to twine with mine, strengthening our connection and along with it, my control … and I hit a solid wall.

She yanked her hand from mine.

“M-immortal. And what kind is none of your business. Now. Back. Off.”

I blinked in surprise.

“How did you resist my compulsion?” Older immortals had resisted me before, but never a newly transitioning one.

“Perhaps, you’re just not that good.” She smirked, her lips curving up in a delicious way, making me want to press her back up to that wall until she was begging to tell me all her secrets.

That’s when it clicked.

“You’re Cinderella’s daughter, the siren,” I said.

“And you are?” She cocked a hip and dragged her gaze up and down the length of me.

“Nikolai.” I held out a hand.

She ignored it.

“Are you going to get out of my way, or am I going to have to force you to?”

“Don’t tempt me.” I winked. I would love nothing more than to throw her over my shoulder and drag her back to our dorm room. Except, my brother might be waiting, and who knew what he would do to her.

She crossed her arms, causing the buttons on her blouse to strain further. I caught sight of the lacy black bra underneath. What did Ash say her name was? Ah, Kira. It suited her.

“Haven’t you heard the rumours? I forced a shifter to submit already today. Maybe I’ll have you run naked through the ceremony hall just to punish you for harassing me.”

I grinned. “If you want to see me naked, Princess, all you have to do is ask.”

It was adorable how she tried to threaten me, even though I could see her pulse race with fear. Keeping our gazes locked, I contemplated other ways of making her stay longer; of making her pulse race for other reasons.

Finally, I stepped back and gestured down the path with a sweeping bow. “The hall is in the ground floor of the castle.”

“Thank you.”

I could practically taste her relief as she rushed to get away from me.

“What a delicious surprise,” I murmured to myself.

I traced back to the room where my brother waited, an angry scowl, no doubt, etched on his face.